​Continuing Education for County Treasurers

A county treasurer must successfully complete an introductory course of instruction in the performance of the duties of county treasurer:

within one year after the date on which the person is first elected if elected to a full term; or

at the earliest available date after appointment or election, as applicable, if appointed by the commissioners court of elected to an unexpired term of county treasurer.

After completion of the first year in office, a county treasurer must successfully complete in each 12-month period at least 20 hours of continuing education in the performance of the duties of county treasurer.

The introductory course required by Subsection (a) and the continuing education required by Subsection (b) must be sponsored or cosponsored by an accredited public institution of higher education.

To satisfy the requirement of Subsection (b), a county treasurer may carry forward from one 12-month period to the next not more than 10 continuing education hours that the county treasurer completes in excess of the required 20 hours.

For purpose of removal under Subchapter B, Chapter 87, "incompetency" in the case of county treasurer includes the failure to complete a course in accordance with this section.

Courses of Study that Qualify

Courses of study must first be approved by the Certification and Validation Committee.

Filing for Credit

Send a letter requesting continuing education approval to Alan Dierschke. Include an agenda and a letter agreement from an accredited public institution of higher education, agreeing to serve as either sponsor or cosponsor of the training. The certification and Validation Committee will decide if credit will be granted and verify the number of education hours requested.

Legal Source

In addition, treasurers must meet the education requirements of the Public Funds Investment Act found in Government Code 2256.008. You may or may not wish to add PFIA language to your web site. The Certification and Validation Committee also approves PFIA courses of study. The following is the language that governs PFIA training requirements for County Treasurers:

Sec. 2256.008. INVESTMENT TRAINING; LOCAL GOVERNMENTS. (a) Except as provided by Subsections (b) and (e), the treasurer, the chief financial officer if the treasurer is not the chief financial officer, and the investment officer of a local government shall:

(1) attend at least one training session from an independent source approved by the governing body of the local government or a designated investment committee advising the investment officer as provided for in the investment policy of the local government and containing at least 10 hours of instruction relating to the treasurer's or officer's responsibilities under this subchapter within 12 months after taking office or assuming duties; and

(2) except as provided by Subsections (b) and (e), attend an investment training session not less than once in a two-year period and receive not less than 10 hours of instruction relating to investment responsibilities under this subchapter from an independent source approved by the governing body of the local government or a designated investment committee advising the investment officer as provided for in the investment policy of the local government.

Open Government Training Information

Elected and appointed public officials are required by a state law to receive training in Texas open government laws. For more information on this training including free video training courses, check out The Office of the Attorney General website.

County Official Organizations

The Texas Association of Counties serves as the umbrella organization for various independent county official organizations in Texas. These organizations serve as an important resource for county officials for information, networking and advocacy.